Iran’s unelected power

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have been sustained in their political and financial ascendancy by their reputed ties to Ahmedinejad since his days as mayor of Tehran. But do they support him – or their own longer-term agenda?

Soon after the Islamic Republic was created in 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini, who was fearful of a coup and conscious of disorganisation in what had been the shah’s army, set up a new military force. This army of the disinherited, established on 22 April 1979, was legalised by article 150 of the constitution as the Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution, or Pasdaran, also known as the Revolutionary Guards. Their mission is “to safeguard the Islamic revolution, security and public order”.

The deepening crisis within the regime in 1980-1, the removal of Abolhassan Banisadr, its first president, and the armed revolt led by the People’s Mujahedin of Iran. led the Revolutionary Guards to repression to confirm Khomeini’s power. When Iraq declared war on Iran in September 1980, the Guards were the only organised force capable of defending the regime against external and internal enemies. They were in charge of military strategy as well as food imports under rationing. They were responsible for the protection of state officials and sat on revolutionary committees claiming to speak for Khomeini.

The dismantling of the radical opposition and the first victories against Iraq ended Iran’s revolutionary period. In a declaration on 6 December 1982, Khomeini recognised the legitimacy of the private sector and private property, and called on the Guards to concentrate on the war effort. After his death in 1989, the Guards backed Ali Khamenei in the election for Supreme Leader (the highest religious and political position) and Ali Akbar Rafsanjani for the presidency. Though the Guards lost political influence during the 1990s, they made up for that by strengthening their hold over the economy. (This is in line with article 147 of the constitution: “In time of peace, the government must utilise the personnel and technical equipment of the Army in relief operations, and for educational and productive ends.”) The activities of the many companies overseen by the Guards are coordinated (...)

(1) Founded in 1965, this organisation took part in the struggle against the shah. It played a role in his overthrow in 1979 but broke with Khomeini in 1981 and joined the opposition army. After a ferocious crackdown, a number of its members fled abroad. It installed a military base in Iraq in 1986 during the Iran-Iraq war and allied itself with Saddam Hussein.